Commemorative biographical record of Washington County, Pennsylvania, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families, Part 32

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1540

USA > Pennsylvania > Washington County > Commemorative biographical record of Washington County, Pennsylvania, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families > Part 32

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J OHN D. BRADEN, of Washington borough, was born in Chippewa township, Beaver Co., Penn., November 21, 1826. John Braden, Sr., his father, was a native of County Fer- managh, Ireland, born at a town called " Five Mile Town," near Enniskillen.

His father (the grandfather of John D. Braden) was James Braden, and his grandmother, Marga- ret Howe, was of English parentage. They raised a large family in Ireland, and said Margaret died and was buried there. The grandfather, James Braden, with his entire family, came to America some time about the year 1789; John Braden, Sr., having grown up to manhood, became the owner of a farm near Youngstown, Ohio, and resided on the same until the breaking out of the war of 1812 with Great Britain, when he joined the army and served therein until the close of the war. After the war John Braden, Sr., was married to Kather- ine McIntyre, danghter of William McIntyre, who was a native of Scotland, and in early times had migrated to this country, settling at Hagerstown, Md. John Braden and his wife Katherine, after their marriage, removed from near Youngstown, Ohio, to Chippewa township, Beaver county, where they lived for over fifty years, having born to them a large family, amongst whom was John D. Bra- den, the only one of the family who resides in Washington county.

John D. Braden, the subject of this sketch, after several years' attendance at Beaver Academy, lo- cated in the town of Beaver, Penn., came to Wash- ington in 1849, and entered the junior class at Wash- ington College, which, later, was consolidated with the Jefferson College. Mr. Braden graduated from this institution in the summer of 1851, and at once commenced the study of law in the office of Hon. George S. Hart, who at that time was Dis- trict Attorney for Washington county, and subse- quently was elected Judge of the Courts of said county. Mr. Braden was admitted to the Bar of Washington County in 1853, and from that time to the present has practiced his profession with a fair show of success, standing at all times in a

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position with those in the front rank at the Bar. On November 11, 1851, he was married to Miss Anna C. Ruple, the youngest daughter of Col. James Ruple, Sr., deceased, and to them have been born a large family, as follows: Rebecca, intermarried with D. J. McAdam, Professor in Washington and Jefferson College; John McIntyre Braden, who is a member of the Bar in this county, since 1879, and has attained a prominent position in the ranks of the legal profession, enjoying a large and lu- crative practice; Alfred Goodrich Braden, a grad- uate of Washington and Jefferson College, and for the la-t eight years the successful Principal of the schools in the borough of Washington; George W. Braden, who is by profession a photographer, and follows that business in said borough at the present time; Lillie M., who teaches a select school in said borough; Ernest Braden, who died De. cember 24, 1891; James Paul Braden, who is a student at the before-mentioned college; Anna and Kate Braden, who reside at home with their par- ents. There were also two other children, Arthur and William, who died in their infancy. In poli- tics Mr. Braden has always been a Democrat, and at all times ready and willing to do his best for the advancement of the principles of his chosen party. He never held office, except School Di- rector and Member of the Council, and also Presi- dential Elector in the Cleveland and Harrison cam- paign in 1892, which ended in a manner entirely satisfactory to the subject of this sketch.

A LFRED G. BRADEN, principal of the public schools of Washington, was born October 16, 1858, in Washington, Penn., a son of John D. Braden, Esq., and Anna Ruple Braden. At the high school of his native town he received a thorough general educa- tional training, and he then entered Washington and Jefferson College, where he pursued a four years' course of reading and study in classics, etc.

Mr. Braden's first business experience after leaving college was as civil engineer for the Pitts- burg Southern Railroad Company, in which capac- ity he served one year, and then was with the Chartiers & Youghiogheny Railroad Company in similar service two years. In 1884 he accepted the appointment of principal of public schools of Washington, which position he occupies with credit to himself and the satisfaction of all interested. To the management and improvement of the schools Mr. Braden has given his entire time and attention, and by his assiduous efforts, coupled with those of an able corps of assistants, has ele- vated the educational institutions under his charge to a high degree of excellency.

On July 21, 1886, Mr. Braden was united in marriage with Ida Mann, daughter of John H. 10

Hall, of Wheeling, W. Va., son of Stewart Hall, of County Tyrone, Ireland, son of John Hall, Esq., of Essex, England, and Irene Zane Howell, daugh- ter of James Howell, of Scotland. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Alfred G. Braden are as fol- lows: Irene Howell, Alfred Goodrich and Ida Rebecca. Politically Mr. Braden is a Democrat, and in religion he is a member of the M. E. Church, in which for some years he has taken an active interest.

OLIN M. REED. Alexander Reed, grand- father of the subject of this memoir, was a son of Robert Reed, who had graduated at Edinburgh, Scotland, and was a minister of considerable repute and high standing in that coun- try; but was called to Ireland to preach against the Arian heresy then creeping into the Presby- terian Church. The church Robert Reed estab- lished at Manor Cunningham, in County Donegal, Ireland, had at one time, it is said, as many as a thousand communicants, and his children and grand- children have been the sole occupants of the pulpit for over one hundred and fifty years. Alexander Reed's brother, Thomas, and his mother's brother, Alexander Cunningham, had settled in the town of Washington, Penn., some time before the advent of Alexander Reed, who came in 1794, from Done- gal, Ireland. The death of his brother, just inen- tioned, occurring soon after Alexander's arrival in Washington, he became sole proprietor of the store now occupied by his grandsons, Colin M. and Alexander (brothers), and records show that he was in business in 1794. He became much in- terested in developing the agricultural resources of the county, and from time to time purchased a considerable amount of real estate. In 1821 he bought a flock of imported Spanish Merino sheep of Alexander Wilson, of Philadelphia, began the business of fine-wool growing, and was the first to send wool to the Eastern market; he lived to see Washington the finest wool-growing county in the United States, with a million sheep on her hills and meadows. He was also among the first to intro- duce the best breeds of English horses and cattle into this part of the State. In 1826 he sent silk- worm eggs to George Rapp, of Economy, the founder of the Economite Society, who gave them to his granddaughter, and it was not long before both Mr. Rapp and his granddaughter made their appearance in Washington, on a certain fair day, arrayed in suits of handsome black silk, the manu- factured product of that gift of silkworm eggs. This was in reality the beginning of the silk fac- tory at Economy, which was in operation some thirty or forty years. In the charter of Washing- ton College, Alexander Reed was one of the trustees, as well as of the Female Seminary. He aided in

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establishing, and was president of, the Franklin Bank of Washington (which became, in 1864, the First National Bank) from its foundation in 1836; he was treasurer of the First Presbyterian Church of Washington from its organization, in 1809, till his death, a period of twenty-seven years. He was president of "The Moral Society" of Wash- ington borough, which was formed April 14, 1825, its object being the suppression of vice and im- morality. In fact, in all projects and enterprises tending to the advancement of the interests of town or country; in all the institutions devoted to the promotion of the cause of education, morals or religion, he was prominent, active and efficient. His regard for truth, equity and honesty was the foundation of the universal confidence reposed in him. In all the varied and multiplied transactions of nearly fifty years, his truth and integrity were never impeached, and he was never engaged in a lawsuit. Mr. Reed was an A. F. & A. M., and a member of Lodge No. 54, Washington, which dropped out of existence about the time of the war of 1812. In his political sentiments he was a Whig. He died in September, 1842.

In 1799 Alexander Reed was united in marriage with Janet, daughter of Rev. Colin McFarquhar, of Inverness, Scotland, who came to this country during the Revolutionary war, and for thirty years preached in an old church that is yet standing in Donegal, Lancaster Co., Penn. The children born to Alexander and Janet (McFarquhar) Reed were: George, Eliza, Colin M., Robert Rentoul, Alex- ander and Sarah; the last two dying in infancy; George died at the age of twenty eight years, and many cherished hopes for a brilliant future were buried with him; Eliza was called from earth while on a visit to Philadelphia, just in the bloom of womanhood; Colin M. has special mention further on; Robert Rentoul, also has special mention be- low; Janet Reed died in 1818, and Alexander Reed married Isabella Lyon, daughter of Samuel Lyon, of Carlisle, widow of William Hoge, of Washington, and a sister of Hon. James G. Blaine's grand- mother; she lived until June, 1868; Alexander Reed died in September, 1842.

Dr. Robert Rentoul Reed, son of Alexander and Janet (McFarquhar) Reed, was born March 12, 1807. He graduated at Washington College in 1824, studied medicine with Dr. Le Moyne, and graduated from Jefferson Medical College, Phila- delphia. In 1848 he was nominated for Congress in the district then composed of Washington and Beaver, and represented the district in 1849 and 1850. He was a member of the Pennsylvania Legislature in 1863 and 1864. In all benevolent enterprises Dr. Reed was always foremost. For a number of years he acted as vice-president and afterward as agent of the Pennsylvania Coloniza- tion Society, in which philanthropie enterprise he

rendered most efficient service. For thirty-six years he was a consistent member of the First Presbyterian Church, and during seventeen of these years he was a ruling elder, and for twenty- six years was superintendent of the Sabbath-school. In 1830 he married Eleanor, eldest daughter of Judge Thomas H. Baird, and their children were: Ann Eliza, Alexander, Thomas, Janet, George, Eleanor, Isabel, Robert, Colin, William, Joseph and Charles. Only four of these twelve children are living: George, Colin, William and Joseph. Dr. R. R. Reed died December 14, 1864; his widow June 25, 1892.

Alexander Reed, born near Washington Septem- ber 28, 1832, graduated from Washington College in 1851, and Western Theological Seminary in 1856. He was a Presbyterian minister, an eloquent and attractive preacher of the Gospel. Princeton College conferred the degree of D. D. on Dr. Reed in 1865. His first charge was Octorara, one of the long-established churches of the Presbytery of Chester, from 1856 to 1864. From there he went to the Central Church of Philadelphia, and remained until 1873. He then went to the South Church of Brooklyn, and resigned this charge on account of ill health. He then went to Europe with his family for a year (having been abroad before for the sum- mer of 1869), and when he returned from Europe he became pastor of the Central Church of Denver, Colo., where he lived until he died, November 18, 1878. He had six children: Elizabeth, Eleanor, James Watson, Robert Rentoul, Mary Morgan and Alexander. Of these, Elizabeth died when an in- fant, and Alexander in March, 1889, aged eleven years. The widow of Alexander Reed lives in Washington with her daughter, James Watson, in Denver, Robert in Pittsburgh. Thomas Baird Reed was an eminent physician in Philadelphia. He was born October 23, 1834, graduated at Wash- ington College in 1852; was medical student with Dr. Blackburn, and graduated at Jefferson Med- ical College, Philadelphia. He was resident phy - sician in the Pennsylvania Hospital from 1859 to 1861. During the Civil war he was a surgeon in the Pennsylvania Volunteers from 1862 to 1865. On October 23, 1867, he married Mary G., daugh- ter of Archibald Campbell, of Carlisle, Penn., and they had four daughters: Elizabeth, Eleanor, Marie and Janet, three of whom are living; Marie, the third daughter, died February 22, 1893. Dr. Thomas D. Reed died April 1, 1891. George W. Reed is in business in Pittsburgh; he was in the Civil war. He married Matilda McKennan, daugh- ter of Hon. Thomas McKennan, and sister of Judge McKennan. They have had twelve children: Rob- ert, Thomas, Baird, Alexander, George, William, Clark, Eleanor, John, Matilda, Joseph and Frank, all living except Alexander and Frank, who died in infancy. Colin graduated from Washington and

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Jefferson College in 1869. In 1874 he married Lida Lord, of Mississippi, and they had six chil- dren: William, Robert, Richard, Eva, Lida and Colin, of whom Richard died in infancy. Lida Reed died in 1885, and Colin afterward married her sister, Lonisa Lord. William was educated at. Washington and Lafayette College. He married, in 1875, Mary McKnight, of Pittsburgh, and they had six children: Margaret, Eleanor, Katharine, Thomas, Mary and William, of whom Eleanor, Mary and William are not living. Mary, wife of William B. Reed, died in September, 1889. Rob- ert Reed died in the army at Georgetown, D. C., July 16, 1863, of typhoid fever. Joseph is the editor of Arthur's Home Magazine, and lives in Philadelphia. All the daughters died when quite young, and Charles when an infant.

Colin M. Reed, Sr., was born in Washington, Penn., November 28, 1804. He was prominently identified with the business interests of Washing- ton. His father, Alexander Reed, was the first president of the Franklin Bank, which was organ- ized in 1836. Colin M. was elected to the same position in 1852, and held it until the same insti- tution was organized in 1865 as the First National Bank, of which he was elected president, and held the office without intermission until his death. In 1855 he was made a director of the Hempfield Railroad Company, and continued one until it was merged into the Baltimore & Ohio. From 1841 lie was a trustee of Washington Female Seminary, and one of the largest stockholders. For many years he was a trustee of Washington and Jeffer- son College and until his death. He was a mem-

ber of the first board organized in 1843 for the management of the common schools of Washing- ton. He was for years president of the Washing- ton Gas Company and of the board of trustees of the Washington Cemetery. During our Civil war he acted as treasurer and general agent for Waslı- ington county in behalf of the Christian Commis- sion. He was also very much interested in the temperance cause, and in the Bible Society. He was a trustee of the First Presbyterian Church, and served as treasurer for twenty-seven years. He was not a politician in the sense that he sought office, but was always very much interested in the success of the Republican party.

In 1835 he was united in marriage with Mrs. Ritner, widow of Lieutenant Ritner, U. S. army. She died in March, 1837, leaving a daughter, Mary, now the wife of Henry Laughlin, of the firm of Jones & Laughlin, of Pittsburgh. In 1842 Mr. Reed married Sarah E. Chapman, of Massachu- setts, sister of Maj. William Chapman, and the children of this marriage were Isabella, Laura, Helen, Alexander, Colin M., Jr., Robert, Ethelind and Alice. Of these Isabella married William Copeland, of Pittsburgh, and both have been dead

many years; Laura is the wife of James R. Clark, and is now living in Mandan, N. D. (They have three children: Colin, Anne and Isabel). Alexan- der graduated at Washington and Jefferson Col- lege in 1871, and is in business with Colin M. Reed, Jr .; Alice married John L. Dickey, a prom- inent physician of Wheeling, W. Va .; Alexander and Ethelind are unmarried; Helen and Robert died in early childhood. Colin M. Reed, Sr., died January 12, 1888, his wife August 7, 1892. He served as treasurer of the First Presbyterian Church at Washington twenty-seven years.

Colin M. Reed, Jr., was born and educated in Washington. In 1874 he married Ada Brownlee, of Iowa, who was educated at Washington Female Seminary. She was a daughter of Samuel Brown- lee and Katharine Clark, and a granddaughter of William Brownlee and Joseph C. Clark-both men prominently identified with the wool-growing in- dustry. Colin M. and Ada B. Reed had six chil- dren, five of whom are living: Katharine, Harriet, Charles, Alexander and Colin; the second child in infancy. Colin M. Reed is a director in the First National Bank; a trustee of the Washington Female Seminary, and trustee of the First Presby- terian Church.

SAAC W. MITCHELL is one of the best-known business men of Washington, and partner in probably the oldest grocery house in the place.

He is descended from a Scotch-Irish family, who in an early day emigrated from the North of Ireland to this conntry, making a settlement on Short creek, in West Virginia. Alexander Mitch- ell, paternal grandfather of Isaac W., by occupa- tion a farmer, was a native of West Virginia, where were born to him five children, all deceased.

Zachariah Mitchell, father of subject, grew to manhood at the place of his birth, and was reared to agricultural pursuits, which he followed until 1853. In 1844 he married Miss Ann, daughter of George and Jane (Wilson) Baird, of Washington, Penn. This Baird family were of Scotch ancestry, the first to come to America having been John Baird, who was born in Scotland about the year 1730, and crossed the Atlantic with Gen. Braddock in 1755. His only son, Dr. Absalom Baird, was the first of the family to come to Washington, which was in 1786; he served in the Revolutionary war, first as ensign and afterward as assistant sur- geon. He was the one who trepanned Gen. An- thony Wayne's skull, which had been struck by a musket ball at the storming of Stony Point, N. Y., on the night of July 15, 1779. After coming to Washington, Dr. Baird built a house which, but little changed, still stands, and during the visit of the French king, Louis Philippe, to the United States at the close of the last century, the royal

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exile was entertained for some time in this house. Dr. Baird died October 27, 1805, the result of a fall from a horse. One of his sons, George, be- came the grandfather of our subject. He was born in Kennett Square, Penn., in 1785, was educated at Washington Academy and for a time was a tutor.' Afterward he embarked in mercantile pur- snits in Washington, in which he continued until his death, November 1, 1860, the present business of his son, A. Todd Baird, having been established by him. At the age of twenty-six (1811) he be- came sheriff of Washington county; was also a member of the Legislature, filling an unexpired term. He was married October 25, 1811, to Jane Wilson, who bore him fourteen children-seven sons and seven daughters. In 1852 Mr. and Mrs. Zachariah Mitchell removed to Missouri, where the latter died August 28, 1853, the mother of five children, viz .: George B. (deceased); Alexander, treasurer of the Mutual Savings Bank of Wheel- ing, W. Va .; and Martha B., Isaac W., and James K., cashier of the Dime Savings Institution of Wash- ington, all residents of Washington. After the mother's death the father went to Texas, and there made his home until 1865, in which year he returned to Missouri, where he died March 20, 1882.

Isaac W. Mitchell was born in Wheeling, W. Va., February 19, 1851, and was but two years of age when brought to Washington, where, at the common schools of the borough, and at Washing- ton and Jefferson College, he received his educa- tion. He chose bookkeeping as his life work, which vocation he followed two years in Iowa and three years in Chicago, Ill., but on account of failing health he returned to Washington in 1874. In 1885 he engaged with his uncle, Mr. A. Todd Baird, in the grocery business which he has since successfully conducted. On November, 1, 1882, Mr. Mitchell was married to Miss Sarah R. Hill, of Blairsville, Indiana Co., Penn. , daughter of Rev. George Hill, D. D., pastor of the Presbyterian Church, and president of the board of trustees of the Western Theological Seminary at Allegheny, Penn. To this union four children have been born: Elea- nor Baird, Georgia Hill, Harriet Todd and Marthine B., of whom two, Georgia and Harriet Todd, are deceased. Our subject is a busy man and has filled and is filling various offices of trust, among which may be mentioned: borough coun- cilman; treasurer of Washington and Jefferson College; treasurer of the Y. M. C. A .; treasurer and director of the Washington Glass Company; director of the Gas, Electric Light & Power and Tyler Tube & Pipe Companies, and of the Farmers & Mechanics National Bank. He is a member of the Presbyterian Church of Washington, and in 1891 was sent to Minneapolis as a delegate from the Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor.

J MORGAN MAURER, M. D., of the Homce- opathic school of medicine, is one of the lead- ing and busiest physicians in the borough of Washington. He was born in Pottsville, Penn., on October 24, 1848, a son of F. H. and Anna M. (Morgan) Maurer, the former of whom is now a resident of Denver, Colo .; the latter died in the spring of 1880. The Maurer family are of German descent. Mrs. Maurer was a daughter of Joseph Morgan, of Schuylkill county, Penn. Mr. and Mrs. F. H. Maurer had a family of eight children, of whom the subject of this sketch is the only one living in Washington county; he has one brother-Howard M. Maurer, and one sister-Anna M. Maurer in Philadelphia, one sister-Kate A. Bassett-in Sheldon, Iowa, and twobrothers-John L. and George F. Maurer-in Denver, Colorado. . J. Morgan Maurer was two years old when his parents moved with their family to Baltimore, Md., and here he received a liberal common-school education. He commenced the study of medicine in 1871 and during 1873, '74, '75, attended the Hahnemann Medical College of Philadelphia, from which he graduated. After this he practiced a short time in Baltimore, then in Pottsville, till September, 1877, when he came to Washington. There being at that time no Homoeopathic physician in the town, he had to work his way into practice, by demonstrating (againt no inconsiderable amount of prejudice) the real merits of the Hahnemann system; and his remarkable success is shown by an almost unparalleled professional record, and the general verdict of the community among whom he practices. The Doctor makes a specialty of the diseases of women and children, and his ride for a long time extended throughout the entire county, but of late years he has to a considerable extent given up country practice.

In March, 1887, Dr. Maurer was married to Miss Susan Jane, daughter of William H. and Jane E. (Jones) Taylor, of whom mention is made elsewhere, and one child has blessed their union- Jane E. Mrs. Maurer is a member of the First M. E. Church of Washington. Dr. Maurer is a member of the Episcopal Church of Pottsville, Penn., and socially he is connected with the I. O. O. F. and Jr. O. U. A. M. He has been extensive- ly interested in the development of the oil fields in and around Washington county.

W ILLIAM L. McCLEARY. This widely- known dentist is descended from rugged Scotch-Irish ancestry, his grandfather, Thomas McCleary, having, at an early day, emigrated to America from the mother coun- try after his marriage in England with Mary Linn, a native of that country.

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They settled in Virginia, and had the following family: James, Jane (married John Fowler), John (deceased when young), Eliza (married James Carr), Sarah (married John Fowler), William, Ewing (married Mary A. McGee), Thomas (twice married, first time to Kate Pryor, and after her death to Mary McGrew; he was a Methodist min- ister for over forty years, and a recognized leader in the community), Martha (Mrs. Lewis Carter) and Julia (Mrs. James Reed). The father of this family was both an agriculturist and a cooper, and after coming to Virginia he passed his days on a farm in Brooke county. In politics he was a faith- ful Democrat, and in religion a devout member of the M. E. Church.

William McCleary, father of the subject of this sketch, was born February 18, 1805, near Win- chester. His father removed to Brooke county, Va., where he was reared and educated, and learned the trade of cooper. On reaching his majority (the farm being small and the family large), he left the parental roof for the purpose of carving out his own fortune, and being of a deli- cate constitution, he was obliged to look for such work as he was best able to perform. He taught school, took trading vessels down the Ohio, etc., and after a time he engaged to drive the stage then being run between Washington and Wellsburg. After driving for some months on this route, he secured employment as driver of a mail coach on the Cumberland road. Under this engagement he first drove from Hillsboro to Claysville, afterward from Washington to Wheeling, and during a por- tion of the time into Ohio. He drove in all about eighteen years, sometimes two, sometimes four. and on special occasions even six horses. During his career he was associated with men, most of whom are now forgotten, and many a tale would he tell, in after years, of the excitement when the opposition lines were competing for public patron- age, and when the orders to the drivers were "to make the time or kill the horses" (ten miles an hour); also of the not infrequent runaways, one of which well deserves to be perpetuated in history. "Mr. McCleary was driving a large black team from Triadelphia to Wheeling. On coming to Wheel- ing hill he threw the rubber bar down, but the blocks jumping out, the bar struck the off wheel- horse, which sprang forward, and in an instant the team became unmanageable and in full flight. Reaching the culvert at the foot of the hill, the coach turned over, hind end foremost, threw the driver in a hog wallow, and tumbled the passengers and mail around generally. Finding no one hurt, and the horses all gone, he ran for the postoffice to have them bring their wagon and get the mail in on time; for if he failed to get the mail to the office at the right time, he was liable to lose his position. Only one horse of that team was ever

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Commemorative biographical record of Washington County, Pennsylvania, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families, Part 32

Author: J.H. Beers & Co Publication date: 1893 Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers Number of Pages: 1540

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1540